


Chancing Fate

by Hannah_BWTM



Category: Prodigal Son (TV 2019)
Genre: Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:48:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24082342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hannah_BWTM/pseuds/Hannah_BWTM
Summary: A little coda to "Like Father", where I saw them ending the season. Malcolm tries to deal with the aftermath of Ainsley's actions and comes to terms with an unknown future after Endicott's demise.
Relationships: Malcolm Bright/Dani Powell
Comments: 10
Kudos: 38





	1. A New Paradigm

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first post into the Prodigal Son fandom, this thread got stuck in my head and I had to write it out rather than wait to see if season 2 starts the same way! There are some cliffhangers as all season finales should still have, feel free to continue my story if you like where it's headed. 
> 
> Please note I haven't read anyone else's fics taking place at the same time, if there's similarities they are completely coincidental.

“What did you do Ains?” 

Malcolm stared at the prone body of Nicholas Endicott, who’s arrogant sneer was now replaced by a vacancy only corpses have, a torrent of emotions swirling inside of him and he needed to pick one to hold on to. 

Relief?   
Endicott could no longer torment his family  
Surprise?   
Ainsley had ultimately been able to protect their family in a way he couldn’t bring himself to do.   
Satisfaction?   
The mastermind of Eve’s death has been brought to justice  
Worry?   
Gil is still lying in the hospital and he doesn’t know what he’ll do if he doesn’t wake up.   
Relief again?  
He’d solved the mystery of the girl in the box, he could close that door for good. 

He couldn’t decide which one to pick, then Ainsley brought him back to the room and made a decision for him, Protector. Ainsley, his strong and confident little sister who was currently covered in a level of blood that looked too fake to be real, like she’d gone into a rage room without the protective gear.   
“What do we do Malcolm?”   
“Okay, who knows you came here? Where’s Louisa?”   
“She left before I got here, nobody knows that I was here”  
“Right, right.” Malcolm searches around the room, looking at the options. Do they dispose of the body now? Did Endicott tell anyone where he was going? He wishes he knew. Suddenly his phone vibrates- it’s Dani. He takes a deep breath and answers. 

“Hey Bright, we went to his house but couldn’t find Endicott. We’ve got an APB out, hopefully it shouldn’t be too long before we’ve got him.” Her voice is full of the same fierce desire he’d heard at the hospital. It hurts to hear the pain she’s in right now and know there isn’t much he can do to make it better. Telling her the truth right now isn’t an option, not for his sister. 

“Oh, that’s great” He tries to sound normal, knowing he’s not quite pulling it off. “So where does that leave the charges they’re supposed to filing against me tonight?”

“We don’t know, JT’s trying to find out. We’re headed back to the hospital now and we’ll figure it out what to do from there.” 

“The hospital, right”. Malcolm knows he'll need to get back there soon, giving him no time to fix this now. 

“We’ll get him, Bright. We’ll make sure he pays for what he did to Gil, and you.” 

“Mmm-hmm, yah. I’ll see you soon.” Malcolm hangs up, takes a deep breath and turns to Ainsley.

“I have to get back to the hospital, we need to move the body and the rug to the secret tunnel-“

“You mean the murderer tunnel?” Man, What has Ainsley got against this tunnel?

“Yup, we’re short on time Ains so this it. We’ll hide him there until we can figure out what to do. You go upstairs, take a shower and find something of Mom’s to wear in the meantime. These clothes will have to go too.” 

Ainsley shoots her brother a withering stare. “Obviously I wasn’t going to keep them. It’s a shame too, I loved these pants” 

Ainsley is reminding Malcolm a lot of his dad today. He still talks about his cardigan that Malcolm ruined during the whole ice pick episode a few months back. Together they drag Endicott’s body down the stairs to a place Malcolm didn’t think he’d be seeing again so soon and concealed the body in a wall cavity. One more secret for this house huh? When they got back to the living room Malcolm surveyed the blood spatter and took a deep breath in. There was no way to clean it in time before his absence at the hospital would be really noticeable. Ainsley comes in with a fresh pair of clothes on borrowed from their mother’s closet and takes control. 

“You go back to the hospital Malcolm, I got this.”

“Are you sure Ains?” 

“Absolutely. I have friends in low places, I’ll figure something out. I’ll see you later.”

“Hopefully not dressed in orange.”

“You never know, it might make your eyes pop”. Ainsley had that gleam in her eye whenever she started to tease Malcolm. What he wouldn’t give to go back just a few hours earlier, before everything changed.

“Alright. Love you, sis.” 

They briefly hug before Malcolm turns and heads back to the hospital. 

***

On the way back to the hospital Malcolm found himself thinking over the events of the last few days, and he suddenly felt tired down to his bones. Between his arrest, his trip to Connecticut to find Sophie, Gil’s injury and Endicott’s demise he couldn’t remember when he’d last slept. As he walked the quiet streets back to the hospital he found himself walking in a fog, trying to process the roiling emotions that he was feeling, each one trying to claim victory on his overtired brain. 

The Girl in the Box, a fundamental cog in the engine of his fragile mental state since he was ten had been found alive and safe. And she’d told him what happened to her wasn’t his fault. He’d heard people say those very words to him before, but it was never enough for him to believe it. Thanks to Sophie he believed it now. The millstone around his neck was finally lifted, no longer would the body of this unknown woman haunt his nightmares. 

This relief was tempered by the worry of having Gil laying in the hospital recovering from a deed perpetrated by Endicott. The location of Gil’s stab wound was worse than his own, the odds weren’t in his favour and despite Malcolm’s fierce conviction that he would pull through it wasn’t enough to quell the fear that he may not make it. The thought of Gil’s last moments happening in a hospital right now made him walk a little faster, hoping the presence of family would make all the difference. 

He barely had time to think about his slight predicament relating to Eddie’s murder charge, not knowing whether the DA would still press charges now that Endicott’s manipulations had been revealed. As he made his way up the ramp to the hospital entrance and entered through the sliding glass doors he held on to the hope that what his mother had witnessed would be enough to keep him out of prison. He had always worried that he would end up like his father, confined for the rest of his life and whispered about as another piece of the tragic Whitly family puzzle. The idea that his worst fear could come to pass and he wasn’t even guilty made him burn with anger. Malcolm decided that this was the emotion he needed to push down for Gil’s sake and his own. He needed to be useful for as long as he could, and showing up angry wasn’t going to help anyone. 

Malcolm walked to the banks of lifts and found one that was empty, got in alone and pressed the button for the third floor. He practiced a few breathing exercises from his yoga sessions, cleared his mind and walked out of the lift ready to be the family and profiler everyone needed him to be. 

As he rounded the corner to Gil’s room JT, Dani and his mother were sitting outside talking quietly. They abruptly stopped talking as he approached, and while he was hoping Dani would be the first person to walk over to him his mother started towards him first. 

“Darling.” Her voice lacked the usual sing-song quality she usually applied to her favourite term of endearment, and her face was tense with concern. She walked over to him and wrapped him in a quick embrace. She lowers her voice to exclude the detectives “Where were you? I step out for five minutes and you’d disappeared!” 

“Never mind where I was mother, what’s wrong? Is something wrong with Gil?” 

Jessica looks at Malcolm and he knows he’s going to pay for that deflection later, but softens her face and provides an update on his condition. “There’s no change, he’s still asleep after the surgery but the doctors say he’s no worse than they were anticipating.”

Hearing this makes Malcolm release a breath he didn’t realise he was holding, the knot in his stomach loosened ever so slightly at the news that he hadn’t worsened. That didn’t explain the look on his mother’s face though. “So what’s wrong then?”

JT takes a step forward, hands in his pockets and looking down at the floor and struggling to find the words he has to say. Dani’s face is frozen into a thousand-yard stare, after their last moment in the hospital all of a sudden she can’t seem to make eye contact. Malcolm’s stomach drops again at the sight, he knows what’s coming is not news that he was hoping for. 

“We just got a call from the DA about the charges for Eddie’s murder.” Malcolm’s heart starts to race and his breath quickens but he tries to keep his face neutral. 

“Oh? And what did our friendly DA have to say?” 

“He said that they are going ahead with the charges.” Malcolm nods, seeing that JT has more to say. “The DA’s office is looking at the evidence they have and they think it’s iron clad. We tried to tell them we have reasonable suspicion to believe that it is planted evidence but until we can access Corbell Laboratories paperwork or get our hands on Endicott they ain’t budgin. I’m sorry man” JT looked at Malcolm and Jessica with dismay, clearly upset at the day’s turn of events. 

Malcolm couldn’t understand how they were moving ahead when there was clearly doubt in the original case. “How can they do that, with everything we’ve found today! What about my mother’s testimony about seeing Gil get stabbed, have they considered that?” 

Dani steps forward to take over, wanting to soften the blow that she knows is coming for their brilliant profiler. Her partner. She takes a deep breath before starting. “They said there isn’t enough evidence to prove the two cases are connected until Gil wakes up to corroborate what she saw.” The pain she can see in his blue eyes takes her breath away, and she would give anything to make this whole situation disappear. 

Malcolm takes a deep breath, bites the inside of his cheek and looks towards Gil’s room. He wanted to be there when Gil woke up, once again fate had decided to intervene in the cruellest of ways. Keeping his movements slow and deliberate he walks over to see Gill breathing slowly, eyes closed and wearing an expression that was so relaxed it belied the seriousness of his condition. Malcolm takes his hand and whispered quietly “I’m so sorry I couldn’t stop this from happening to you. Endicott won’t hurt you again I promise. Wake up for me soon okay?” His voice starts to crack from all the stress of the day so he sits quietly for a moment before walking back into the corridor, ready for the next part of this waking nightmare to begin. He turns to his team and asks

“Okay then, so what happens now?”

“Well we’ve had instructions to take you into custody.” Dani pulls her handcuffs out and Malcolm thinks that they’ve been through this too many times in the last few days. He sighs and puts his hands in front of him, waiting for her to close the gap between them once more. She slowly makes her way over and he hears the slow clicks of the cuffs locking into place. He can hear his mother over his shoulder huffing at the injustice. 

“Don’t worry Malcolm, I’ll have all my lawyers at the courthouse first thing tomorrow morning to get you out of this. The fact that they won’t even wait a day is outrageous!” 

“I know Mom, but we kind of knew this was coming. I’m sure JT and Dani will find something soon and this will all be like a bad dream.” Malcolm sounded confident, but deep down he knew the chances were pretty low that this would be a short-term arrangement. He didn’t know whether Ainsley could get rid of Endicott’s body successfully, and Endicott’s absence would make it hard for any detective to get to the bottom of this convoluted mess. “Now I just have to figure out how I’m going to get along with my dad at the same prison.”

JT and Dani exchange a look that puts Malcolm on edge instantly. JT says quietly “You’re not going to Rikers.” 

“What? Why not? It’s a murder charge, that’s where all the alleged murderers go. Hell, it’s where jaywalkers go, they throw everyone in there!”

JT bites his lip, choosing his words carefully. “The DA has ordered that you be detained at Claremont Psychiatric based on the severity of the charges and your documented mental health struggles. They’re claiming that Rikers wouldn’t be equipped to deal with the level of specialist care you need.”

Malcolm’s jaw drops. “That’s insane, a lack of resources hasn’t stopped them before! Look at me, I’m completely fine!” As his voice starts to rise in frustration a realization hits Malcom like a ton of bricks. He knows why this is happening. “Endicott. It has to be his influence again. This is all just another part of his sick game to destroy our family.” His brain is running an million miles an hour, how is he going to get out of this if the guy pulling the strings isn’t alive to untangle them anymore? JT and Dani exchange another look but say nothing. 

Dani reaches out for his hands and searches for Malcolm’s eyes. When she finds them he starts to come down of his preverbial cliff and his breathing slows back to normal. She wishes that there was something she could do right now to erase this day completely, but that particular machine hadn’t been invented yet. “We’ll come with you, Bright. You won’t be heading there alone.” 

“Thank you guys.” Malcolm turns to his mother for one final goodbye. “Can you let Ainsley know where I’m headed? I don’t want to wake her in the middle of the night. And call me if Gil wakes up. I’m sure you remember the number for Dad’s old place.”

Jessica manages a small smile, tugs her top down and pulls herself together for one final goodbye. “Of course sweetheart, we’ll come and see you as soon as we can.” 

“Love you, Mom”

“Love you too, darling.” 

And with that the investigative team from Major Crimes left their Lieutenant to recover with the watchful gaze of Jessica Whitly, hoping that his sleep would be short lived to save their beloved profiler.


	2. Welcome Home

Dani sat in the back of the sedan with Malcolm, JT in the drivers seat as they made their way through the city in the early morning. Dani was worried about him, yet when she looked at him where she expected to see panic about this whole situation instead saw a calm resolution. His head was tilted upwards, seemingly admiring the skyline that he may not see for quite some time. The calm suited Malcolm, it wasn’t a face he wore often. 

He must have sensed Dani watching him and he turned to face her, a small smile creeping across his face. There were so many things she could say, yet none seemed enough for the moment so she returned the smile and held his gaze. Malcolm reached out his cuffed hands and took hers in his, rubbing his thumb slowly across the back of her hand. The small gesture felt intimate, stirred something in her that she hadn’t been willing to admit before. She wasn’t ready to lose him yet. 

* * *

They arrived at the bottom of the hill waiting for the gate to open to Claremont Psychiatric Hospital and Malcolm was filled with dread. He’d made this entry hundreds of times over the last twenty years, but he’d always been able to leave. This time was different, and it was hard to look at the building with its walls and bars quite the same way. They pulled up to the entrance and JT opened the car door for Malcolm. Dani walked around and grabbed his elbow, gently supporting Malcom as he exited the car. Her hand lingered on his arm, looking for a reason for the two of them to stay connected for just a little longer. Malcolm turned to Dani and gave her that smile again, she melted inside a little and returned a small one of her own. JT cleared his throat and gave the two of them a look that they both knew exactly what he was thinking and Dani dropped her hand, the moment broken. The three of them stood awkwardly in a triangle, none quite knowing how to say goodbye for now. Malcolm gave it a shot anyway. 

“Well, you know where I’ll be if you need my help” he tried to joke in his usual way. 

“We will get you out of this Bright, I promise.” JT’s determination lifts his spirits momentarily. “When Gil wakes up and we get the bastard we will be down to the DA’s office ASAP to get this sorted out. Just sit tight and try not to get stabbed.”

“Ehhh, I don’t think I can promise that. Have you met me?!” His face turns up in a grin, one last joke before his worst nightmare becomes all too real. He turns to Dani. 

“Make me a cup of tea once in a while will you?” The pain in her eyes is almost more than he can bear. And she doesn’t even know that Endicott won’t be coming to his rescue any time soon. He looks away to save them any more anguish, flashing back to their moment in the back of the car, dancing while he was high, anywhere but here. 

“I will.” Dani has so many things she wants to say but can’t find the words. Having Gil in the hospital and having to leave Malcolm here was too much for her heart today. Two constants in her life were now changing and it was affecting her more than she could have ever thought. 

A guard in the usual white Claremont uniform comes to meet them in the foyer, casual swagger abounds. “Is this Malcolm Whitly?”

“Bright, my name is Bright” Malcolm spits through his teeth, he’s been in the visitor logs enough times that they should know this detail by now.

“Yeah, yeah I got orders to get you processed. Let’s go.” He grabs Malcolm by the elbow, though not unkindly, and directs him towards the door. Malcolm looks back one last time at his team, wondering whether he will ever be able to walk out with them again. Dani turns to get back in the car, finally letting the tears she’s been holding on to spill over onto her cheeks. She didn’t want Malcolm to see them, this grief would be hers alone to bear. 

* * *

Malcolm doesn’t remember much about his admission, he did what he was asked but didn’t want to interact more than necessary. He changed out of his clothes and into the prison whites that he recognized so well from when he visited his Dad and said goodbye to profiler Malcolm Bright for the time being. Some of the guards recognized him while he was walked handcuffed through the hospital, some were surprised and others less so. He guessed that there were always going to be people who assumed that his Dad had rubbed off on him. It wasn’t all that different from the stares he usually got when people found out who he was, it just bothered him less today while he was so tired. 

The last few days had shown Malcolm that he was not his father. There had been opportunities to become his father, to take a life and he’d chosen not to. That knowledge burned within him at such an intensity that it only made him more determined to get out of the mess he’d found himself in. He’d solved the mystery of the Girl in the Box and knew that those nightmares held no power over him anymore. No doctors, medication or a corrupt justice system could take that away from him. 

As they walked through the halls he realized that they were taking the same route to his father’s old cell. 

“Excuse me” he cleared his throat after being unused for a while. “Where is it that we are going? I don’t think I classify as needing to be in the high security wing. I’ve only been charged with murder, not convicted yet!” He knew there was little point in pleading his case with a random guard and probably didn’t do much for their impression of his mental state, but he felt he had to try. The man shrugged and guided him forwards. 

“I don’t make the room assignments, I’ve been told to take you to the high security wing so that’s where we’re going.” 

“But- wait- I-“ Malcolm’s brain started to kick into gear. They wouldn’t put him where his father had been for twenty years. Surely there was someone worse than what he was accused of in here right?! Suddenly he was having a hard time breathing as they opened the final door into the high security wing. He was pushed down the short corridor to the end of the hall where a familiar room, cell BB33A had its door open and ready for a new occupant. 

“No. No. NO!!!!” 

He’d had this nightmare before, the one where it was him tied to a tether in his father’s cell. Never in a million years did he think it would become reality, especially when he knew he was innocent. Malcolm expected to see Mr David waiting at the door but it was yet another unfamiliar face and he wondered if Endicott did something to Mr David that led to his extended absence from Claremont. He was hoping for a friendly face but it wasn’t to be. 

The guard walked him into the room and over the red line. His father’s bookcases had been removed, the Persian rug was gone too. All that remained was the bed and a desk with a few books on it, most likely from the hospital library. 

“Turn around.” The guard looked at Malcolm expectedly. Malcolm looked confused. 

“Why?” 

The guard showed him the tether bolted to the wall. “To put this on. New arrivals get restrained until they complete their assessments with the Docs, given the time it shouldn’t be more than a few hours before you get seen.”

“That’s ridiculous, I’m not a THREAT!” Malcolm didn’t mean to shout but restraints he can’t release has been something that’s made him anxious since his time with John Watkins. The guard looks at him like he’s heard this all before and isn’t entertaining the possibility that what he’s saying might be true. 

“Look kid, you either turn around and we put this on, or you fight, I jab you with some benzos to get you to calm down and then we put it on. Your choice.”

Malcolm quickly thought through his options and decided to turn around. The fight wasn’t worth it today and if he slept he wanted to have the option of waking up. He felt the click of the padlock on his back and his stomach dropped. His worst nightmare had come to pass. He looked up at the walls he knew so well, shocked that they were now his walls. Malcolm tried to keep his anger in check, not wanting to seem upset in case medication was suggested. His mind was the clearest it had been in weeks and his very freedom was at stake based on how he behaved. He didn’t know how closely he was being watched and didn’t want to give anyone ammunition to keep him here longer. 

“We’ll be back in a few hours, make yourself comfortable Malcolm.” And with that the guard closed the door, locked it with the key and left Malcolm with nothing but his thoughts. Malcolm took a few deep breaths and tried to repeat his daily affirmations, hoping one would be enough to stop his racing heart and mind. 

So how am I going to get out of this one? Malcolm thought and he walked around in his new rubber shoes, trying to get his bearings. He looked over to the bed and saw a package in plain brown paper sitting on top, a small envelope bearing his name tucked into the string tying the package together. He opened the card to find a simple message: 

Dear Malcolm, 

Welcome home. 

Nicholas. 

His head started to spin. No. He couldn’t have planned this already, everything had changed so quickly in his last few hours. Malcolm ripped open the package to find a tan knit cardigan, the same his father had worn in this very cell every day since he start visiting last year before Malcolm ruined it with an ice pick. Malcolm turned to sit on the bed, his breath coming faster and faster with every second. He was in way over his head and had no idea how he was going to get himself out of it. 

He lay down on the cot and closed his eyes, trying to think of something pleasant to hold on to but all he could see was those two words written by someone from beyond the grave. 

"Welcome home" 

Welcome home indeed.


End file.
